Support Forum

Linux: How to completely remove Quantum and revert to an earlier version

I completely dislike Firefox Quantum. I run a non-systemd version of Linux and they only include the latest version of Firefox. Is there a place to download the source code of an older Firefox with somewhat easy instructions to compile?

Related to the question, but not necessarily relevant to the fix: this is the absolute worst update to Firefox,, ever. People have been talking about how it looks or seems to behave or not, depending on the system. My concerns are more fundamental. I can get use to a crappy UI.

First, it was a bad idea to get rid of the ability to intrinsically disable Javascript through the program itself; however, I kept using Firefox because I have been using a version of this software since day 1. Literally. My father and I were long-time subscribers to the Netscape service; hell, I still have my last set of Netscape disks I bought. Also, I could use an addon to give me that functionality. My favorite addon was QuickJava, which, thanks to the new changes in Firefox Quantum, will no longer be updated. Not only that, every JS button I've checked out is not available for Quantum. So, I have to open a new tab, type "about:config", search for javascript, find it, double click on it and then go back to my regularly scheduled browsing.

Firefox developers are aware that Javascript is the absolute worst problem on the Internet now that Flash is going away, right? If not, please, for the love of all that is holy, get educated.

I was able to adjust Firefox in the about:config to make it somewhat secure (well, as secure as one can be on the web, without known 0day vulnerabilities) by tweaking its internals through addons or further about:config changes; however, now, many of those keys are gone with little to no explanation of whether that particular hole was closed or it's always enabled.

I could give a flying fig about "speed compared to Chrome", within reason. I care about privacy and security, and this convenience over privacy and security has pushed me to either use an older version of Firefox or to seek another browser altogether. Until such time as I can either trust Mozilla will do the right thing with privacy, I can no longer recommend it. If people are going to use the Chrome-like UI, with Chrome-like speed and Chrome-like functionality, why the hell would they just not use Chrome? I distrust Alphabet, and Google by extension, but, isn't that what Mozilla's Firefox has become? It certainly seems like it. So, I'm going to be recommending Chrome to all my friends, family & business partners, associates, etc.

Oh, another thing, with just 4 tabs open, Firefox Quantum eats 1.2+ GB of memory. What the hell is that!?!

I completely dislike Firefox Quantum. I run a non-systemd version of Linux and they only include the latest version of Firefox. Is there a place to download the source code of an older Firefox with somewhat easy instructions to compile?
Related to the question, but not necessarily relevant to the fix: this is the absolute worst update to Firefox,, ever. People have been talking about how it looks or seems to behave or not, depending on the system. My concerns are more fundamental. I can get use to a crappy UI.
First, it was a bad idea to get rid of the ability to intrinsically disable Javascript through the program itself; however, I kept using Firefox because I have been using a version of this software since day 1. Literally. My father and I were long-time subscribers to the Netscape service; hell, I still have my last set of Netscape disks I bought. Also, I could use an addon to give me that functionality. My favorite addon was QuickJava, which, thanks to the new changes in Firefox Quantum, will no longer be updated. Not only that, every JS button I've checked out is not available for Quantum. So, I have to open a new tab, type "about:config", search for javascript, find it, double click on it and then go back to my regularly scheduled browsing.
Firefox developers are aware that Javascript is the absolute worst problem on the Internet now that Flash is going away, right? If not, please, for the love of all that is holy, get educated.
I was able to adjust Firefox in the about:config to make it somewhat secure (well, as secure as one can be on the web, without known 0day vulnerabilities) by tweaking its internals through addons or further about:config changes; however, now, many of those keys are gone with little to no explanation of whether that particular hole was closed or it's always enabled.
I could give a flying fig about "speed compared to Chrome", within reason. I care about privacy and security, and this convenience over privacy and security has pushed me to either use an older version of Firefox or to seek another browser altogether. Until such time as I can either trust Mozilla will do the right thing with privacy, I can no longer recommend it. If people are going to use the Chrome-like UI, with Chrome-like speed and Chrome-like functionality, why the hell would they just not use Chrome? I distrust Alphabet, and Google by extension, but, isn't that what Mozilla's Firefox has become? It certainly seems like it. So, I'm going to be recommending Chrome to all my friends, family & business partners, associates, etc.
Oh, another thing, with just 4 tabs open, Firefox Quantum eats 1.2+ GB of memory. What the hell is that!?!

There are a number of JavaScript toggling web extensions for Firefox 57+ at https://addons.mozilla.org/firefox/search/?q=Javascript&appver=57.0
The Flash Player Plugin form Adobe will still be supported until 2020 with restrictions on use over time. https://developer.mozilla.org/en-US/docs/Plugins/Roadmap

Thank you for the answer, but it does not help. The current addons only block JS, they do not toggle it. That's a massive difference and takes additional system resources which tend to slow down Firefox over time.

And, I have no desire for Flash, at all, ever. It was the single worst security whole on my systems... about which I am aware.

Still trying to find ways to make Firefox useful, and safe, again. None of the JS addons currently do the job correctly.

''James [[#answer-1042268|said]]''
<blockquote>
There are a number of JavaScript toggling web extensions for Firefox 57+ at https://addons.mozilla.org/firefox/search/?q=Javascript&appver=57.0
The Flash Player Plugin form Adobe will still be supported until 2020 with restrictions on use over time. https://developer.mozilla.org/en-US/docs/Plugins/Roadmap
</blockquote>
Thank you for the answer, but it does not help. The current addons only block JS, they do not toggle it. That's a massive difference and takes additional system resources which tend to slow down Firefox over time.
And, I have no desire for Flash, at all, ever. It was the single worst security whole on my systems... about which I am aware.
Still trying to find ways to make Firefox useful, and safe, again. None of the JS addons currently do the job correctly.